United Hyundai owner closes Las Vegas dealership

By Steve Green

Sunday, Jan. 3, 2010 | 4:48 p.m.

Facing lawsuits filed by lender Bank of America, the owner of United Hyundai over the New Year's weekend abruptly closed the dealership at 2025 E. Sahara Ave. in Las Vegas.

Phones went unanswered at the dealership Sunday, but signs on the windows showed the dealership had closed down.

Competitors Planet Hyundai, 7150 W. Sahara Ave.; and Henderson Hyundai Superstore, 460 N. Boulder Highway, remain open. The Henderson dealership advertised on its Web site that it's ready to serve customers of the closed United Hyundai.

With the recession driving unemployment to 12.1 percent in the Las Vegas area, several dealerships closed last year, including Centennial Hyundai in the Centennial Centre in the northwest Las Vegas Valley.

At least five lawsuits are pending in Clark County District Court pitting Bank of America against United Hyundai owner FT Automotive and related companies over United Hyundai and other FT Automotive dealerships.

FT also owned United Dodge, 5750 Sky Pointe Drive; and United Chrysler Jeep, 3250 E. Sahara Ave., which were ordered closed as part of the Chrysler bankruptcy last year.

In one of the lawsuits filed Dec. 8, Bank of America complained FT had defaulted on loan obligations for the Dodge, Chrysler Jeep and United Hyundai businesses. The bank said it was owed $12.3 million and asked the court to appoint a receiver to supervise the United Hyundai business and protect its collateral.

But in court papers in one of the earlier lawsuits, FT Automotive executive Donald Forman Jr. said the termination of the Dodge and Chrysler Jeep franchises due to the Chrysler bankruptcy made it impossible for FT Automotive to meet its loan obligations to Bank of America.

He said through the June 9 closures of the Dodge and Chrysler Jeep businesses, "FT worked diligently to liquidate its inventory and reduce the amount of the obligations to the bank."

"Still, the bank accelerated the indebtedness due under the Dodge dealership loans and the Chrysler dealership loans and is now aggressively pursuing a collection action against FT" and its guarantors, Forman said in a court filing.